Ethiopia, ConnectED

ConnectED, Ethiopia

Solar computer “hole in the wall” project provides free ICT access to children in a rural Ethiopian village

The Challenge

No internet connection and reliable access to electricity The Hole-in-the-Wall initiative was a social experiment carried out in a Delhi slum by Dr. Sugata Mitra, Chief Scientist at NIIT, whereby a computer was installed in a wall at a metre height. The idea was that the computer would be at the right height for children to use, but not for adults. There was no instructions, just an isolated computer poking out of a wall and see what happens. And of course, children started using it and teaching each other. Due to the success of this project Jason R. Atwood (director of Ethiopia ConnectED) was inspired to run a similar social experiment in rural Ethiopia.

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The Solution

Aleutia replicated the Hole-in-the-Wall project by provided two computers, running on solar which was setup in a school, rather than on a street corner in an urban slum. Aleutia computers were pre-loaded with open source Edubuntu Operating System, featuring typing games, astronomy, chemistry and math applications, as well as, an offline version of Wikipedia. A school with no periodic table now had an interactive digital one. 700 children and children from neighboring villages used the computers, proving that a single computer can create a massive difference.

“This project would have been impossible without the incredible support of the Aleutia team.”